Dry-dock



VAfull and exact description of the same, reference being had to -the annexed xdraw- .I Apart of my invention. Y It is attached atone end-to a small raft of logs (R) floating on thedeck of which -is flush with the surface of the water. 'L is a-lever for preventing the vibration or'tilting vof the dock as it ymortises in the posts t, t, t, or through bits,

.thebraces connected-therewith form a trussframe for stifening the dock oroat .transfloats laid side by side, .the lever is attached, at theouter- ,end,to apost driven in the is adapted to raising ships, and has thelever UNITED *.sTArEs PATENT onirica.

HUGH K. WAGNER, :OF

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

DRY-DOCK.

Specification of Letters y:Patent N o.

Tov all whom t may concern Be itl known thatI, HUGH K. WAGNER, of

I'do hereby declare that theefollowing is a ings, making. a part of this speciicatiomin Whichn Figure l 1s a transverse sectionof a dock,

sinks, orrises, andy is the most substantial the water; the4 other `end passes through as shown in Fig. 5. p, p, arelongitudinal partitionsrunning the. kwhole -length of the float. F, f, f, f, are timbers framed into and connected by, irons with the posts whichv support B, the ballast-float. C is a pieceof timber laid upon and fastened to the tops of the posts or bits, t, t, ,and having short blocksl fastened `to lthe top of it, forms the cradle to .receive a steamboat upon. b, b, are beams framedinto the posts t, 25,15, and with versely.

Fig. 2, is the same as Fig. l, except that-it is sunk byiilling theballast iioat B `full of water, andhas a steamboat drawnuponit to be raised, a section of which is shown. The shadedV part of this. igureshows the waterin the dock after itfhas beenpartially pumped out.

`Figf is ano-ther form consisting of two ground. .The wvater is :supposed to be umped out,in which .case it isnecessary to detach thel lever, from the post, otherwise the lever would be liable to injuryatz the point L, or the bits at the point. B. In this .form it possesses themeans of repair within itself, and in this respect has an advantage over `the form .shownin Fi g.- l.

Fig. is the same as Fig.3, except thatvit turned Iin an upright insteadof a horizontal position. The lever in this case isy to be tong-ned by spiking yto itsfside apiece of oak, three i by` six, inches, which is to play,

4,842, dated ivmremim` 1o, 1846.

pieces, spiked to a postdriveninthe'ground,

` or attachedz to a .wharfor other body7 that will hold it rmly in a perpendicular-posi# tion. These tongues and grooves are shown at G, Gr.

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section Vcorresponding with Figs. l and 2. F, F, F, isa frame for supporting a ballast float, which is raised up by thecapstan C, and supported by the loose braces B'whicharesuiferedto fall out when the ballast float is to be lowered. T, T, are posts and braces 4forminga truss-frame running the entire length-of the float and spikedon the outside ofboth sides of it. L, L, aresbits with-` levers in' them, P, P, P, are posts connected with the transverse truss-frames, mentioned in section lof this specification. R are iron .rods Orhandles forvopening and shutting vthe valves 'to the orifices through which the water passes from lone compartment of the .float tothe other. s I is a copperpipe with swivel joints, to the upper end of which the screwed.

Fig. 6 is the plan correspondingwith gthe last described `figure. B, B, are the ballast floats. R, R, R,`iron rods for openingland shutting the valvesl mentioned in the last section. iI `is a-leather. or gumelastic, pipe are longitudinal and transverse partitions .for preventing the agitation of 4the water while the dock is rising or sinking. yA, lA,

pump is to. be'

.distendedby a spiralspring, to the end of, which pipethe pump is toA be screwed.V P,P,

are apertures in the deck to. which pipes-` areJ to belscrewed to let the air the dock. s

Fig.- 7 is an isometrical projection 4of Va pass out and into .dock lcomposed of two flo-ats, F, F, lying longitudinally in aline with eachother, and

about five feet apart. They'are disconnected with each other .except by a pipe (a) `and a similar one on the other side of the dock for lettingK the air pass freely through both ioats from one end of the dockto lthe other. Y

p, p, are pipes of leather orhemp distended by spiralv springs, for letting the air pass out and into the dock. aare hose, for maintaining an equilibrium ofv water fin the ballast oats tof which they are attached.

B is a ballast float without a deck anddivided by partitions withinj to prevent v.the

- agitation of the water. R,is. a raft rof logs which Y may serve instead of -the ballast .oats,= to steady thejend;ofthefvlever, and

' one float to the others.

wheels or pawls. D is a ballast float resting on the water. The levers may be forced down by the rack work and the shafts S,Y

but-if the'operation raises the floats up as at E, it will be necessary to put in sufcient water to sink the levers to the depth required. These oats are filled in the same manner as those on the other side of the dock, namely, by the pump which is subsequently to pump out the dock. A hose leads from the pump to the floats and also from The levers and the mortised posts through which they pass, the braces which ,support and stien the levers; the frames which support the ballast floats, and the windlasses by which they are raised up, are deemed sufficiently obvious upon inspection of the figure. T is a piece of timber notched out and fastened to the levers to hold them from spreading as the ballast float is raised up. WV is an iron box about eighteen inches square, resting upon the deck of a ballast float. It receives in its side a pipe which can be moved in any direction by Vmeans of its goose necks and swivel joints, and which passes through the deck to the bottom of one of the floats. The opposite side of the box receives a pipe in all respects similar to the one described, and

connected with the other float. The pump is screwed to the tube at the top of the box and when set in motion draws the water simultaneously and equally from thetwo flo-ats. There are two valves in this box by which the water maybe stopped in either pipe, at pleasure, and as occasion requires. By using two pumps the boX can be dispensed with.

Fig. 8 sho-ws the exterior and interior construction of a ballast float. C is a capstan head or nut with bars in it, the revolution of which around the screw S raises the ballast float up or forces it down as occasion requires. ballast float, to keep it from spreading when filled with water. R, R, are iron rods passing through the bottom of the ballast float and the frame F, under which there is a nut and screw. The upper end of the same rods pass through the -lower part of the capstan head, and is secured there likewise by nuts and screws, as more clearly shown in Fig. 10. The Figs. O, l, 2, 3, &c., on the near post indicate the depth of the water over the cradle prepared for a steamboat. a portion of a lever.

Fig. 9 is a ballast float with a deck on it. R is a rack and pinion for forcing the lever up or down as occasion requires.

F, F, are frames put around the L is Motion is given to the pinion by the lever L, an eye in the end of which fits on to an iron shaft, to the other end of which the pinion is attached. B is a set of bits, and L a link for holding the post in a perpendicular position, while the ballast float is rising or the levers are forced down; 7L is a hole for filling it with water,"and r a hole for letting it run out.

Fig. 10 isa section of the capstan C, Fig.

8; S is the screw passing through the center of the cap N, which forms the nut; the shaded port of the figure is bolted to the frame F; the lower pieces L, L, form the lower half of the capstan head and on the outer surface have the appearance of a cylinder divided by a perpendicular plane through its center. The shaded part is connected with the ballast float by the rods' show the bolts by which the several parts s are connected.

Fig. 1l is an elevation of the last described gure, showing the manner in which it is secured to bottom piece B under the ballast float and to the top T of the frame which supports said float. The dotted lines F show t-he frame to which the shaded part of the head is bolted in the last figure.

Fig. 12 is a transverse section, and is the same as Fig. 7 eXcept that in this figure the levers are of equal length on both sides of the dock. All of the ballast floats in this figure are intended to be raised up and then filled with water. The transverse trussframes are here omitted. The figure is deemed too obvious to need further descrip tion.

I now proceed to describe the construction of this dock. The sides are formed of pieces of oak as long as they can be had and about twelve inches square, strongly bolted together with square bolts. The ends are formed in the same manner. When the dock is intended for steamboats of siX hundred tonsL and under I construct it of two floats'as in Fig. 7 each about one hundred framed into a post at each end of about five by twelve inches, (these posts may run up i a sufficient height above the deck to form a toA run longitudinally the whole length of the oat. Thev beams .for supporting the deck and theV bottoni are to -be laid into scores cut in this piece to such a dept-h, as that the upper edge of the de ck beam, and the lower edge of thebottom beam,.will be flush with the transverse timbers mentioned in-y the twelfth section, and also with the top and bottomv ot the sides of the floats, into` i which scores are to be made to receive them.

The bottom and deck plank will be about two inches thick.,A The longitudinal, partit-ions ofv which there will be two, and the transverse partitions of which there will be two, .in each loat,are also to be about two'inches thick; the transverse partitions will be nailed to thoseA two truss-frames which mostnearly divide 'the lengthy of the float into three equal divisions, andthe longitudinal ones will be ynailed to studs, two

of which Vwill be spiked to each transverse one. There will b'e a man-hole in `thedeck over each one ot the compartments thus formed, large enough lfor a person to enter when repairsbecome necessary. When the dock is in use these holes are to be kept closed tight. The partitions are to be calked and made perfectly tight, except a small aperture at the top for the circulation of air, and a hole at the bottom, three inches in diameteror thereabout for the passage of the water fromone compartment to the others.

Plugs of a conical formare iXed to these holes for stopping them as occasion requires.- These plugs are to be held in the holes by a spiral spring attached to the small end of the plug by a wire andare to be drawn out of the'same by a wire attached to the large end or base, and runningto the top of the frame which supports the nearest bal-` last float. These wires are tobe arranged in the manner and' on the principle of vbell wires. The act ofdrawing a plug from its hole will be the same as that of ringing a bell, except that when pulled, the wire is to be held out, by attaching a ringl at its end to a hook driven in the post of the frame aforesaid.A The wires will be soarranged asthat one wire will draw two or more plugs when practicable, as occasion requires. Iron rods about half .an inch indiameter maybe used twenty feet.

instead of vthese wires, as shown in the plan, FigcG, atR. The plugs are to be tiXedtov the ends of the rods; the rods are/to be run abouty eighteen inches through `the hole, and to move 1n a ferrule. or eye placedl about one foot from. thepartition, and exactly opposite the center of the hole.y The rod is to be cut in: two, ata point nearly opposite the most central of the ballast float frames, and attached to a wheel; (W.l Fig. 6), the shortest portion of-therod thus cut-is to be attached to the bottomof the wheel, and the longest portion thereof tothe top of the wheel. The wheel stands in a perpendicular position withv its side parallel to the side of the float. An iron shaft about oneinch and a quarter indiameter forming the aXle of. the wheel, passes from the wheel through a ferrule fin `the side of the float .to a point labout three feet less distant from the side i of the float, than the post which supports the -ballast ioat. It there forms an elbow, and

passes perpendicularly upward till yits topreaches a convenient posit-ion for being handled from the deck of the ballast float. lWhen the plugs-are to be Adrawn out of the f holes, the upright shaft, or rod, is to be moved from the ballast float in a direction parallel to the side of thedock; and in a contrary direction when they are. to be pushed into the holes. But I prefer the wiresto be rods.

i In the longitudinal sectiony Fig;v 5 .the 4truss-frame is shown on the outside ot the oat; but forrthe convenience ofcalking it 'would be as well on the inside-using: the

posts oi" the transverse truss-frames, for ythe l'ong1tud1nalones, and keeping the braces of the rlattery entirely within the deck and the lbottom of the float. When put inside ot the float, there will be tour of these braces be `tween every two ofA the transverse trussframes ;-two on each sideof the tloat,.cross ing eachother in the form of an X.

The `levers are to be made of oak timber4 of about twelve by eighteen inches and of ,a

length proportioned .to the weight. and

draft ot the'vesselsto be raised. When.

the dock is constructed in the form shown in` F l2, wherein the levers are of vequal length on bo-th sides, I make them to fproject over and outside of the float about They are to be supported at the outer end by braces, six inches'square, running from the endL of the lever, where it is `made to fit ina mortise tothe side ot' the Heat about a toot above the bottom, where it also fits in a mortise about two inches deep.

yClose to the sides vof the latter mortise are two eyes, between which the brace exactly ri'its, and having a hole in it, coinciding withv the' eyes, a bolt is run thro-ugh which secures it to the :side of the float. The upper end maybe secured to the lever in a similar manner. 1 That portion. and end of the lever,-

which rests upon the fioat passes through bits, as shown in Fig. 5, or through posts of about six by eighteen inches, mortised to receive them. A shoulder about fifteen inches from the end, is to be cut, so as to form a tenon to fit snugly in the mortise of the post nearest the center of the float, and a key driven through the lever outside of said post, to prevent the lever from drawing out, as the ballast float and the water within it, press down upon the other end of it.

The frames for supporting and suspending the ballast floats, are made of two posts of about twelve by sixteen inches, and a cross piece or bearer of the same size, resting and framed upon their tops. The posts are framed into, and stand upon the ends of the levers. They are supported in a 'perpendicular position by standing braces connecting each post with its appropriate lever, and two hanging braces in the angles formed by the meeting of the posts and bearer. rlhe several parts of these frames may be held together in the same manner as mentioned in section 18, for securing the braces to t-he sides of the float and to the ends of the levers. The frames are to be framed so that they may be easily taken apart when required to be used on another dock. All of the foregoing work is to be constructed of oak timber.

The ballast floats are made of sound and clear white pine, one and a half inches thick, nailed to bottom and top beams of about two by siX inches, and to side timbers or studs of about two by three and a half inches, all of oak, framed or nailed together at the angles. Frames as shown at F, Fig. 8, may be put around the outside to keep them from spreading. The construction dimensions, and manner of raising the ioats with screws, may be seen by inspec tion of Fig. 8, and section 7 of this specifi cation. The ballast float there mentioned, intended for the two float dock, Fig. 7, is twenty feetlong, ten feet wide and five feet deep. vThe ballast float may also be raised up by capstans, windlasses, or by racks and pinions, and are to be held up by strong ratchet wheels or by pawls, which fall into notches made in the posts. )When the ballast floats are forced down in to the water the action of the ratchet wheels, or the pawls must be reversed. i

Although Figs. l, 2 and 3 are used to illustrate the principle of this improvement, the lever is not intended to be used in that manner in practice. When one end is connected with a post, as in Fig. 3, it is to move up and down in a slot made in the post, and held from slipping out or in, by a shoulder on the side next the dock, and a key on the other. An upright piece is to be fastened to the end of it, to which a rack is bolted. A pinion gearing into the rack is fastened to the post by the motion of which the rack, and the lever with it, are forced up or down and held in any position by a ratchet wheel and click, which are to be constructed so as that their action may be reversed at pleasure. When a raft of logs is used to steady the lever, it will be necessary to attach a post to it, as at R, Fig. 7, grooved to receive a tongue on the upright piece attached to the lever (as Gr, Gr, Fig. 4L); the tongue is held from coming out of the groove by an iron band put around both the upright piece and the post, sufiiciently loose to allow. the tongue to play. The rack and pinion are then to be applied as above. (See R, Fig. 9.)

Pipes about three inches in diameter made of hemp or leather, distended by a spiral spring, are to be screwed into the orifices in the deck of each float as near the four outer corners of the dock as may be, as shown at 7J Fig. 7, for the passage of the air out of and into the dock. Similar pipes are to be used to connect one float with the other; as a, Fig. 7. Vhen one end of the dock is higher than the other and nearly filled with water, the air will pass out at the higher end while the water will pre vent it from passing out at the lower end. These pipes must be elastic, or have a gooseneck and swivel joint at the bottom, so as that when the wheel of a steamboat comes in contact with them, they will give, until it passes over, when a cork or copper float at the top will bring them to an upright position.

A copper pipe about live inches in diameter is to be fixed between the deck and the bottom of each float, to supply the pump. Another pipe will be screwed to it at the deck, with goose necks and swivel joints so arranged as that it may be bent or moved in any required direction. A pipe thus formed will lead to a boX made of metal, eighteen inches square, placed on one of the ballast flo-ats near the center of the dock. A tube is to be screwed into the top of the boX, and the pump to the tube. The pump will be as large as the two five inch pipes can supply, and worked by a steam engine, placed on the same ballast float, with the pipes and box. The box must contain two valves for stopping the water in either of said pipes at pleasure. These pipes may be made of leather distended by a spiral spring, and provided with goose necks and swiveled joints where necessary, (see w, Fig. 7), so that when the ballast float on which they rest, sinks or descends, the pipes may not be strained.

I now proceed to describe the o-peration or manner of using this dock. When a steamboat or other vessel is to be taken on, a hole three inches in diameter in each end of each float is to be opened, by moving a slid-ing valve attached to al handlelreachi'ng up to the top ofthe nearest ballast float. The dock will then sink until the deck reaches the water. The pipe leading to the pump is to be screwed on at the vdeck to the piece below it. The air pipes are to be screwed on at the deck. -The ballast floats are to be raised up as high as necessary. The pump is then set in motion to fill the ballast floats with water, which is equally distributed by means of the hose uniting them. The ballast floats being filled, the dock sinks until the ballast floats reach the water. The holes by which the ballast float-s entered the dock, are to be stopped by the handles thatI opened them. The steamboat is drawn over the dock and placed so that a plane passing longitudinally through her center will coincide as nearly as may be with a like plane passing through the center of the dock. Her center of gravity is next made to rest as nearly as may be over the center of the space between the two floats (when two floats are used, as Fig. 7). The water is then to be let out of the ballast floats by drawing plugs from their sides. The dock will then rise until the cradle strikes the bottom of the steamboat.

The Figs. 1, 2, 3, &c. on the posts are to be examined, in order to see if the dock lies horizontally; if it does not the ballast float neXt the lower part, after stopping the plug hole in its side is to be forced down into the water by the ca-pstans or by the racks and pinions till it is brought to a level pol.

sition. The pump is again set in motion. As the dock rises, the ballast floats must continue to be forced down into the water, to steady it and preserve its equilibrium. The higher it rises the greater will be its tendency to tilt or vibrate; if one part of the dock appears to rise faster than another the holes in that part must be stopped by slacking up the wires and letting the springs draw in the plugs. The pump continuing to act will draw the water from the lower parts of the dock until an equilibrium is established, which may be maintained by paying a little attention to the levers. When the deck of the dock reaches the surface of the water the' tendency to vibrate will cease. The pumping is to be continued until the deck is brought about eight inches above the water. The holes in all the internal partitions, are then to be stopped by slackening up the wires and allowing the springs to draw in the plugs. The pump and air pipes may beunscrewed and put out of the way, or removedI to another dock, to be used there. The levers can be drawn out, and together with the other apparatus can be removed to another dock. The dock,

with the steamboat upon it, can be brought close along shore, or removed to any convenient place for effecting repairs.

'Heretofore"float'ingf'dry docks lhave been v i madewithsix or more floats lying transversely under the vessel to be raised, jwi'th trunks or frames standing upright -at their ends, forming together, sides or walls tothe dock, with k'spaces or windows between. Each lone ofthese upright trur'iks contains a pump, a pump well, two or three valves and a ballast well. In a dock of seven floats there are consequently fourteen pumps and pump wells, with their accompanying pipes and valves leading thereto. The trunks are permanently fixed to the ends of the floats, so that they cannot be removed when they are not required. One set of these trunks and apparatus connected there-with, can serve only for one dock. The trunks are a considerable obstruction to light and air; they are a considerable sinking force Aor burden for the dock to support; and a dock thus constructed presents an area to the action of the current or of floating ice nearly double of that presented by the lever dock. ,It moreover does not possess the kcapacity of being towed with facility from place to place, when a vessel is on it, a capacity which the lever dock possesses to a great degree. Others have been constructed of one float, contiguous to, or surrounded on two or three sides with a wharf or other bodies fixed permanently to the ground. Screws or other means connected with such permanent bodies and with the float, are used to force down the float when it is lilled with water, and to prevent it from vibrating or tilting ras it rises up.

When a light body, as a plank, is forced in a horizontal position undery the water and the sinking force remo-ved, its tendency is to rise endwise or edgewise. If, there.- fore, a flat vessel, as one of the floats hereinbefore described, should be sunk to a oertain distance under the surface of the water, and a vessel placed upon it, when the sinking force was removed, it would immediately seek the surface of the water in any other than a horizont-al position, and would be liable to throw the vessel off onto her side. This tilting tendency I call the vibration; and it is to prevent this by a ple means, and at a small expense, that I propose to use the movable levers; in consequence of which, I call this the lever dock.

The advantages resulting from the use of these levers, are: (l) The upright trunks, and the numerous pipes, valves, and pumps connected therewith in a dock composed of seven floats, are dispensed with. (2) The levers sinking apparatus and pump will serve for several docks. (3) Every obstruction to light and air is removed. (4:) The dock is relieved from the sinking force, or weight of the sinking and pumping ap-v paratus. (5) It presents the smallest possible area to the action of the current; and

is easily towed from place to place. (6) It provement, and disclaim all other parts of requires no Wharf or other Xed body to the dock-hereinbefore mentioned.

steady it.

I C1aim HUGH K. WAGNER. 5 The movable levers, in Combination with Witnesses:

the dry dock, as the most important and P. W. JOHNSTONE,

substantial p21-rt of my invention and m- JAMES M. DONMAN. 

